The Purple Figure in My Mind
by HydraFlow
Summary: Vermont goes through the implantation process and meets his A.I. Zeta. Will they become a good team or will they be crushed under the Director's tests. OC. Not sure on the rating so I'll leave it at T until further notice. AU ftw!
1. The Mind

**The purple figure in my mind**

I woke up to see the blinding light of the surgery room and I could feel a pinch at the back of my head there was a liquid racing down the back of my neck, I moved my hand in curiosity of this liquid and I brought my hand up to my face, I could see the crimson stain of blood staring me in eye, only just though, as my vision was blurring and fading in and out, I noticed that I wasn't touching the operating bed and instead, I was floating due to the lack of gravity in the room. Just as I thought I was passing out, I could feel something stirring in the back of my mind, I closed my eyes and I could see a deep purple figure waving at me, so I waved back at them, the figure then approached me in a friendly manner and I noticed that the figure was female, she was wearing a suit of armor similar to my own but hers was a deep amethyst-like colour, she stood in front of me, about a meter from my face and I attempted to communicate. "Where are we?" I asked her, in a confused manner, and she replied with "We are currently in your head". "Ok, I'm Vermont, and you are…?" She then hesitated and looked down slightly, then corrected her posture. "I am the A.I. fragment Zeta". I then started brainstorming hundreds of questions to ask this mysterious woman, I then thought of one to ask… "What personality are you Zeta?" She then smiled sweetly and replied with "My personality is compassion, sympathy and kindness; I was assigned to you specifically to help you with these attributes, as you cannot conjure these feeling naturally". I then think to myself how well we connect with each other. She then walked forward slightly, placed her delicate hand on my shoulder and spoke to me in a happy manner. "Well Vermont, I do believe it's time to wake up now, as we have a lot to do tomorrow" She then giggled, curtsied and faded in to the darkness. I then looked up and saw a blinding white light, similar to the one in the operating room, I could feel all of my senses coming back to life and bombard me with sensations.

I opened my eyes to see four silhouettes standing either side of me, as my eyesight was starting to clear; I soon started to recognize all of them, the Director, the Councillor and the agents Washington and New York. "How do you feel Agent Vermont?" The smooth voice of the Councillor inquired. It took me a couple of seconds to realise who he was referring to, I then came to my senses, sat up and said. "I feel dizzy, but all is good, how long was I out?" As soon as I said that, Washington and York shared a look of concern and then York replied with "Dude, you were out for 8 days straight…" "Eight days?" I asked, more to myself then the others _"Apparently so" _Spoke a feminine voice inside my head, I could then see a small purple shimmer out the corner of my eye, I then turned to see the amethyst armor of Zeta the A.I, _my _A.I staring at me and smiling, she held her helmet under her arm and she was standing on my shoulder. "Hello Zeta, it is good to see you" The Director interrupted in his southern accent, Zeta nodded in acknowledgement and waved to the Councillor. "Hello Zeta, how do you feel the implantation went?" The Councilor asked in his usual curious voice."Well I'm here now, aren't I?" she replied in a cheerful tone.

York and Wash leaned in to get a better look and Zeta waved to them too, York was the first to wave back and said "Hey, I'm New York, but you can call me York" Zeta then looked at Wash, He was a hesitant at first but he then waved and said "Um... H-hi, I'm Washington but everyone calls me Wash" Zeta looked at him in confusion and then spoke up "No need to be nervous Wash, I don't bite" She then giggled and smiled. York then spoke out loud "Hey D, come on out I want you to meet someone" Then, as soon as he finished a green light appeared out of nowhere and a small figure was floating above the medical bed "Hey Epsilon, why don't you do the same?" Wash followed. A light blue figure also floated above the bed, "Hey, what's up? I'm Epsilon" The blue figure stated in a rowdy manner "Hello, I am Delta, it is very nice to meet you" The green one said, he was a lot more polite than Epsilon. Zeta nodded again "Hi, I'm Zeta, it's good to meet other A.I.'s" She chirped. The Director then faced me and said "Agent Vermont, it is time to get back to work". So I swung my legs over the side of the metallic bed and stood up, I immediately sat back down gain due to a throbbing pain occurring in the back of my head. "Whoa, whoa, easy there 'Monty! Don't rush yourself!" York said as he helped me back on the bed. "It's takes a while getting used to an A.I."

I attempted to stand up again with the aid of York and Wash. When I was on my feet, a nurse approached me with some tablets and a glass of water. "Here are some painkillers to... you know, kill the pain." She said sweetly. "Thank you" I replied with a smile. "Have a good one" She called out from behind us. I placed the four tablets one after the other, inside my mouth and swallowed them. The bitter taste still residing on my tongue. "Ugh... I hate those things" I muttered to myself.

As we walked the halls of the _Mother of Invention_ I could feel Zeta rapidly thinking in the back of my mind. "_Hey Z, you ok?" _I asked "_Yeah, I'm just uhh... running some calculations, that's all..." _She said hesitantly. "_I suspect that's a lie Z" _I asked in a suspicious manner. I shoved it off, guessing it wasn't important. We kept walking until we got to the locker room the doors opened to see the one person I really didn't need right now...

Delaware...

**A.N: This was my First FanFic, I wrote it during an english assignment and my teacher said it wasn't what she was looking for, so instead, I decided to add a bit more to it and post it on here for you lovely people to read :D This is my first story and criticism would be great. I may do a prequel but it's up to you guys. There will be more to come if people like this story. - Hydra**


	2. The Cafeteria

Delaware turned around and stared at me with those brown eyes of his.

"Hey guys, look what the cat dragged in!" He sneered in his usual cocky tone.

"Shut up Delaware" I snapped back at him.

I walked over to my locker and opened it, I was still in the surgery clothes and I was dying to get out of them. I stared at my purple and red armor and it stared back at me. Just as I put on my undersuit Delaware leaned against the locker next to me with a stupid grin on his face.

"So Monty, show me the A.I. then" He demanded.

"I'm not in the mood Delaware, leave me alone" I said sternfully, not wanting to take his shit any longer.

"Aww, don't be like that, just show me your A.I and I'll leave" He was begging now and I couldn't take it any longer.

"I swear to god Delaware, if you don't leave in the next three seconds I will break your fucking nose!" I yelled, making him step back a bit.

"C'mon Monty, it's just an A-". _SM__ACK! _Delaware fell to the floor, clutching his nose and yelling in pain. I had done, exactly as I said I would. Wash and York ran around from the other side of the lockers to see me standing over Delaware, with a clenched fist and he was on the floor with his hands over his face.

"Dude! What the hell was that?!" Wash asked with a terrified look on his face. York, on the other hand, had an amused look on his face.

"He had it coming" I replied. I turned to face him and I spat on the floor next to him.

Zeta appeared next to him and held back a laugh. I knew I was going to like her.

I took all of my armor and walked to the changing rooms.

After I got my armor on, I walked towards the Director's office. I approached the door and opened it.

The Director and the Councillor were standing in front of a holographic table that was displaying some foreign objects with strange symbols on the sides.

"_No doubt they'll be in a future mission..." _I said to Zeta inside my head.

"_Probably_" She replied.

"Ahh, Agent Vermont, I see you've arrived" The Director barked.

I stood up straight and saluted him.

"Stand down Agent, no need for formalities here" he softened up.

"The Councillor and I have arranged a training resume for you to get used to having an A.I"

At that moment Zeta appeared and was hovering next to my left shoulder.

"Said resume will consist of Last Man Standing, Lock-down paint, Hand-to-hand combat and one of your choice, that'll be all, dismissed"

As I turned to walk away the Director then spoke up and said "Oh and Agent Vermont, try not to hurt other Agents outside of protocol.

Instantly recognizing what he was referring to, I smiled and walked away.

As I was walking down the halls, a sudden pain developed in my stomach.

Realizing I hadn't eaten in days, I headed straight for the cafeteria.

I walked in and saw North, South, Washington and Texas all sat at a table together. South and Tex were arguing about something, fuck knows what, and North and Wash were sat quietly eating their food, trying not to get hurt I presumed.

I shook my head and headed for the serving area, where I got myself a cappuccino, a bacon sandwich, an apple and some crisps.

I picked up my tray and walked over to the table, which had turned into a fully fledged battlefield, since the last time I saw it.

South and Tex were throwing their fists and any object they could get their hand on. Including a marine, who South kicked away.

Feeling more people were going to get hurt, I placed my tray down on the table and grabbed Tex and South by their hair and threw them onto seats.

"LADIES! Will you PLEASE stop fighting?! Their are people trying to eat!" I yelled at them both, who of which were still trying to process what just happened.

Zeta materialized sat on my shoulder and started to laugh at the both of them.

Omega and Theta ten appeared in front of her and were examining her closely.

"Hey, I'm Zeta" She spoke between fits of laughter.

Epsilon then appeared behind them and placed his hands on their shoulders, Omega threw him off and Theta flinched a little.

"Gentleman, say hello to your sister" He said in a confident tone.

"I'm Omega" Omega said in his deep-as-fuck voice.

Theta was a little hesitant at first, but he overcame it when Omega gave him a nudge.

"H-hey, m-my name is Theta, it's nice to meet you" He spoke quietly. Omega gave a nod of approval and Theta loosened up a little.

"So you got your A.I. then?" A female voice I instantly recognized spoke from behind me.

I turned around and hugged her. "How you feeling Monty?" She said smiling at me. I took my helmet off to reveal a wide grin spread across my face.

"Great now you're here" I said in a soft tone.

"Of course you are" She said in an amused tone.

"I am Alaska, now you can sort this out" I said in a cheery tone.

She rolled her eyes, walked towards Tex and South and crouched down by them.

"Now then ladies, what seems to be the problem?" She spoke in an authoritative voice.

Tex was first to speak as South was rubbing her scalp from when I grabbed them.

"Well, South here reckons she could best me in a fight against Maine, so I reminded her that she couldn't even win a fight against me"

"Bullshit" South muttered.

Alaska took a long sigh and stood up. "Well then why don't we all agree that Tex, go and sit next to Monty, who sits by me and North and South, you can sit next to Wash?"

"Fine" Tex spoke in annoyance. "Whatever" South followed.

Me and Alaska then took a seat next to North, who smiled at us and went back to eating his spaghetti.

Tex sat down next to me and brushed her midnight black hair behind her ear.

"Sorry about grabbing you by the hair by the way, it was only to grab your attention, no hard feelings?" I asked softly.

"It's fine, don't worry about it Monty" She spoke, sounding a little defeated. She smiled and started eating the rest of her pizza. Which was probably cold by now.

Feeling sorry for her, I offered her my bacon sandwich which was rewarded by a strange look and then a hug, which like the rest of the table, was surprising to me, as she was supposed to be the biggest badass in the project. I returned the favor by hugging her back and handing it to her.

"You like her, don't you?" Alaska whispered to me. Feeling an interrogation coming on, I shook my head and said "No, I just felt sorry for her, having to eat cold food, that's all"

"As your older sister, I have a right to know these things you know" She said in a serious voice.

"Honestly, I don't, now can I please eat my food?" I said in a tone of annoyance.

"Meh, why do I even bother?" She asked herself.

I couldn't lie forever. I always admired Texas to some degree, but I was never sure of my actual feelings towards her.

"_Why don't you tell Alaska the truth?" _Zeta asked.

_"Oh now you're gonna start?" _Embarrassment growing by the second.

"_I was simply asking" _She said calmly.

"Can Agents, Alaska, Florida, Vermont and Texas proceed to the training room floor in 30 minutes, thank you" F.I.L.S.S.' voice chirped through the mess hall.

"Oh fuck me" I spoke in absolute annoyance. I really couldn't be bothered with this training session, but I guessed it would allow me to get used to Zeta during combat.

Just as things couldn't get any worse, Delaware stormed into the cafeteria with a bandage over his nose. Zeta appeared and had the biggest grin on her face.

Delaware pointed at me with a shaky finger and started to shout at me. "Y-YOU! YOU DID THIS TO ME! NOW IT'S MY TURN!" He clenched his fists, pulled his arm back and before he could thrust it forward. Tex grabbed it, twisted his arm behind his back, kicked the back of his knees and punched him in the back of the head, knocking him out cold.

His friends that had followed him in here, lost their confidence and started to back away, in fear of the same happening to them.

"Thanks" I said, still in a state of disbelief.

"Don't mention it" She replied with a smile.

"C'mon we've got a training session to attend to" She said. I finished my coffee and put my helmet on.

I helped Alaska up, put my trash in the bin and walked out of the cafeteria.

The next hour was going to be a painful one.

**A.N: Hey guys, sorry it's been a while, I had other errands to attend to, I hope you liked this chapter, because I stayed up until four this morning to finish it. Just a reminder, I WILL be accepting OC requests, given you provide me with them, I will try to implement them into my story. Have a good one.**

**-Hydra 3**


	3. Last Man Standing

As Alaska, Texas and I approached the training room, I couldn't help but think about what happened in the cafeteria.

Texas had stopped me from being hurt. Why is that?

Is it because I gave her my food?

Or stopped her from getting hurt by South?

Or is it for another reason?

I couldn't stop looking at her either. Even through her armor, I could still see every curve. She had a perfect hourglass figure, toned legs and arms and a perfectly flat stomach.

_"Stop it Monty!_" I told myself.

But I couldn't bring myself to do so. She is the toughest Agent in the entire project, armies would fall before she does. Her ego would allow her to ignore people like me. Yet she helped me?

I finally picked my mind out of the gutter, just in time too, as we were about to enter the training floor.

Florida was already there and ready for the simulation to start.

We went to our weapon benches to grab our weapons of choice.

Alaska took a DMR, two grenades and a combat knife.

Florida picked up an Assault Rifle with a laser attachment (moron), and combat knife.

I allowed myself to mix things up a little with a Shotgun, two magnums, two grenades and a tomahawk.

Texas, on the other hand took pretty much everything on her table, dual SMGs, an Assault rifle, a Battle Rifle, two magnums, six Grenades, and two knives.

"Fuck this is gonna hurt..." I said to myself._  
_

"Agents, for this simulation, I have personally come to observe you to test your capabilities, now then, are you all ready?" the Director spoke over the intercom.

"Yes sir!" We all called out in synchronization.

"Okay then, F.I.L.S.S., run the simulation"

"You ready Z?" I asked.

Zeta appeared in front of me looking a bit nervous.

"I guess" She said quietly, sensing her uneasiness, I pumped my shotgun and said "Lets wipe the floor with these fuckers"

Feeling her confidence boost, I rolled my shoulders and cracked my knuckles.

The weapons bench then lowered into the floor and F.I.L.S.S. voice chirped over the intercom.

"Round begins in 3... 2... 1... Begin!"

"Z mark and track their locations at all times, if they get within 5 meters of us then activate my proximity alarm" I said out loud.

"Complying" She replied.

"Tex will be the hardest to eliminate as she can cloak, Omega is a tough A.I., so I wouldn't recommend going against him just yet,we'll wear them down first, then go in for the kill"

"Acknowledged"

I ran behind a pillar and waited for Z to mark them for me. Once she had completed this task. I jumped on top of the pillar and leaped to the one next to it, deliberately making myself an easy target for Florida as he would be the easiest target.

My proximity alarm then went off as someone was behind me, so I back flipped off of the pillar behind no one other than Florida.

"Typical..." I murmured.

I kicked him in the back of the legs, which brought him to the floor and shot him in the face with my shotgun, covering him in lockdown paint.

As I did so I could hear his muffled sigh of annoyance, being the first to go must have been embarrassing for him.

Before I could turn around my proximity alarm went off again this time it was someone to my left.

"Zeta, activate suit jammer" I ordered.

"Done" I heard her say.

I heard someone yell "FUCK!" and I went to investigate.

Turns out the person I jammed was Tex, her cloaking device was starting to fail. Hoping I could get the jump on her, I quickly hid behind a pillar and placed my shotgun on my back, knowing it would be useless against a CQC expert.

I grabbed a magnum and loaded it with a fresh clip.

I held it in both hands and started to silently walk towards Tex, who was still trying to fix her cloaking. As I neared her, I could hear her frustrated groans.

I assumed she had given up as she uncloaked and turned around, much to my despair. This was about to get ugly real fast if I don't act first.

She started to run at me, so I fired three shots, one hit her in the chest, another in the leg and the third missed as she tumbled to the ground.

I was about to fire at her head when two rounds hit me in the ribs and my magnum, which rendered it useless.

Of course I instantly knew this was my sister.

Knowing this would become a fist fight anyway, I threw the gun at Alaska and ran towards her at full sprint, while she was distracted by dodging the firearm I launched at her.

She found her bearings and raised her arms in front of her face to prepare herself for the punch I was about to throw.

When my fist found it's target, Alaska went flying into a pillar, I felt kinda bad, but she did annoy me earlier... And boy was it satisfying.

While she was down, I pulled out my other magnum and shot her multiple times in the face and chest. Eliminating her from the game.

"And then there were two..." I said to Zeta.

"Indeed" She replied.

By the time I had rid my sister out of the game, Tex had recuperated herself and had both fists raised.

She must have scraped most of the paint off or something because there was barely any left on her leg or chest.

She ran towards me and I did the same, when we met, she swept me off of my feet.

I slid across the floor but managed to shoot her in the back before a paint grenade landed next to me.

"Fuck..." Was the only thing I said, as I kicked it away and hoped for the best.

Thankfully, it exploded behind a pillar and the paint barely reached me, just little bits that hardly affected my movement at all.

I could feel Zeta getting weaker from running my armor ability.

"Zeta, deactivate Jammer, I'm gonna need you to be active, track Tex as best you can, look for any shimmer or distortion in the light, outline it on my HUD and increase proximity alarm to ten meters, I need time to prepare for her attacks" I ordered her.

"Complying" She said quite weakly.

I felt bad for pushing her this far, but I was helpless without her.

My alarm went off as Tex was 10 meters behind me and enclosing fast.

I turned around and shot in her direction and an outline of her formed roughly in her location. One shot hit her in one SMG as she started firing the other and I rolled to the side to avoid the blasts.

I was surprised how long Omega can keep up her cloaking device at the speed she was moving.

The outline on my HUD showed that she was raising her arm for a punch, instead of letting it hit me, I grabbed her arm and attempted to swing her back in the direction she came from.

It backfired horribly as she countered it and jumped behind me, disarming me of my shotgun and tomahawk.

The tomahawk had a blunt end with paint bags, designed to explode when the tomahawk hits someone.

I had little time to react as said object came down on top of me, just in time though, I grabbed the weapon, threw it to the floor and headbutted Tex away.

"Zeta, deactivate advanced HUD and proximity alarm and maximize suit jammer" I yelled.

"Affirmative" She said.

I could physically feel how worn out she was.

I drew back my fist and punched Tex in the chest so hard, it knocked her off of her feet and lodged her inside one of the pillars that hadn't been destroyed already.

I corrected my stance and waited for the dust to clear.

The deadly form of Tex stepped into view, Omega hovering by her shoulder.

They simultaneously cracked their knuckles and neck.

I was pretty much done for now.

She ran towards me and punched me in the face and with a _CRACK!,_ she sent me flying backwards onto the floor.

She then slowly approached me, pulled out one of her magnums and shot me in the crotch and face. Multiple times. Ending the game.

"Shit..." I said in defeat, waiting for the technicians to wash the paint of of me.

After two minutes of waiting for them to get rid of the paint, I finally got up and started walking towards the exit.

"_How you feeling Z?_" I asked.

"_Tired, very tired_" She replied quietly.

"_Log off, we've got another training match in three hours_" I told her.

She gave a sigh of relief and logged off.

The next training session won't be as hard as this one.

"Good game Monty" Tex called out from behind me. Which made my heart skip a beat.

"Huh? Oh yeah, uh... good game Tex" I said a little hesitantly.

Tex gave me a funny look.

"You feeling okay? You're a little hesitant" She asked, still giving me the look.

Thankfully, I still had my helmet on, otherwise she would have seen the slight redness in my cheeks.

"Yeah it's just... I uh... got a bit of a headache from when you punched me..." I lied. Praying she wouldn't question me.

"Oh, okay, sorry about that" She said with a small smile.

She then turned and starting walking away.

I felt hungry again. After that training match I gained quite the appetite.

"Hey Tex!" I called out to her.

"Yeah?" She replied.

"Do you wanna get something to eat? Maybe?" I asked a little desperately.

"Sure, why the hell not?" She said in a more friendly manner.

She was a little more outgoing then I expected.

"I could do with another bacon sandwich, what about you?" She said in a mocking tone.

We both laughed and headed for the café.

**A.N SURPRISE! Two chapters in two days, I wrote this one straight away, after I released the second chapter, however, I didn't stay up too late for this one. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this one and there will be more to come. Reviews are welcome and I would appreciate it if you can tell me what I'm doing wrong. OCs are still being accepted, but you must PM me with your submissions.**

**Have a good one!**

**-Hydra**


	4. Rest in pieces

** Rest in pieces... **

After five minutes of talking and laughing with Tex, we finally reached the café. Much to our surprise, it was pretty desolate, other than the odd marine and crew member, there wasn't anyone there.

We looked at eachother and shrugged. Even Omega were surprised, as he appeared in front of us and gave a look around.

I took my recon helmet off and clamped it to my thigh, walked to the serving area and picked up a tray.

There wasn't anything special on today, so I sighed and got myself some macaroni and cheese. However the macaroni was always dry and I could have sworn the cheese was four hundred years old, as it was stale and smelled awful.

I approached the coffee machine and made myself a cappuccino, the usual.

Tex had another bacon sandwich, which made me smirk slightly, and some orange juice. "_Quite unusual..._" I thought.

We found a table that hadn't been occupied, however, it wasn't exactly a hard task to complete.

We sat there quietly eating our food for two minutes, when Tex suddenly spoke up.

"So, how old are you Monty?" She inquired.

I swallowed the food I had in my mouth and opened my mouth to speak.

"23" I returned.

"Wow, you're quite young, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I joined the project when I was 17" I told her, her face gleaming with fascination.

"How'd you manage that?" She asked, giving me her undivided attention.

I could tell she wanted to know, because she had stopped eating and drinking completely.

"Let me tell you from the beginning, so you might wanna get comfortable..."

She relocated herself from the other side of the table, to the seat next to me.

She then sat down, placed her helmet and sidearm on the table and rested her chin on her hand.

"Ready?" I asked her. "Yup" She replied with a nod.

"Okay, when I was 13 my mum married a guy by the name of Gary, everything was well at home and he would treat me and Alaska or Maddie in this case, to fish and chips every Friday, we loved him like a father and he was the best thing that happened to our family.

About a year later he started to develop a drinking problem. Said drinking problem led him to have severe violent outbursts, which got progressively worse everytime he got drunk.

It eventually got to the point where he would beat our mum black and blue, for doing the stupidest little thing. Everytime he did, me and Maddie used to hide in the basement of our house.

One day, after two years of being a severe alcoholic, he got himself so wasted, he beat our mum to the point that he knocked her out. He then found us hiding in the basement, grabbed Maddie by the hair and started to hit her. That day, something inside of me snapped, all fear that I had of him in that moment of time was lost, and instead, replaced by absolute hatred.

He raised his fist to punch her and I grabbed it. While his brain was too busy trying to process what had just happened, I took the opportunity to kick him in the balls and punch him in his face, allowing Maddie to get away.

I ordered her to wake up mum and run away. I remember her running up a few steps and looking at me, I still remember those fear-filled eyes from watching me pound the man that brought us together and tore us apart.

I persisted to beat Gary like he abused our mum and my sister. Punching him in the face and chest, causing blood to pour out of his mouth. I had never felt so angry at a person, when he beat our mum I felt so helpless, but as soon as he touched Maddie, I lost it. She was my closest family member and I would die for her.

After relentless pounding, Gary stopped breathing. He was dead. I stood I up and stared at his lifeless corpse. I had slayed the monster that terrorized our family for years.

While he lay in a pool of his own blood, I spat on his dead body and walked away. I climbed the basement stairs to find Maddie and mum staring at me for guidance. I could feel the desperation in their eyes.

I told them to pack some clothes, food and a few items of sentimental value. As I decided it was about time we got out of the house. After we had packed our things. I went to look at Gary's dead body one last time. His eyes were cold and lifeless, the blood around his mouth had dried and his skin had turned grey.

"Rest in pieces, motherfucker" I said through gritted teeth. It was the last thing I ever said to him, before we left the house and ran into the city, where we would live for the next year.

After one year of living in the city of New Mombasa. We were doing okay for ourselves. Mum had got herself a job as a waitress and we were living in a three bedroom apartment. Little did we know though, the police had found Gary's dead body and we were being hunted for murder.

One day, after coming back from school, me and Maddie came home to two NMPD officers, who took me and her into custody. Mum was still at work and had no idea of the situation.

We were taken to the station and questioned about the night of his death, we told the investigator about Gary's severe drinking problem and I admitted to losing it and killing him.

The investigator then exited the room and another man walked in, this man wore glasses, a sleek suit and had a deep Texan accent. He gave me and Maddie two options, we could both serve five years in medium security prison, or we could join his cause in the military and become elite soldiers. Faced with the option of not seeing my sister for five years I took the second option and she did the same.

We were then escorted out of the police station and into a limousine. The limousine took us back to our flat and Mum was standing there behind two suitcases. She had tears in her eyes and she was standing in between two officers.

We were let out of the car and Maddie ran towards Mum and hugged her, she was then handed her suitcase, and escorted back to the limousine. I walked over to mum and she held both my hands and spoke in a very sad tone. "Whatever happens, promise me that you'll keep yourself and Madeleine safe?"

"I promise" I replied. Not only did I promise my mum that day, but I also promised myself. I turned around and picked up my suitcase, walked to the limo and entered the vehicle. That was the last time I saw my mother.

The limo took us to a spaceport and that's when I saw _The Mother of Invention_ for the very first time.

And that is how I joined the Project Freelancer."

I looked at Tex and she had tears in her eyes.

"I'm so sorry" She said in between sniffles. My life story had brought her to tears.

I extended my arms and she came closer and hugged me.

"Don't be, that was six years ago" I said with a smile, still trying to comfort her.

She didn't say anything and just held me tighter.

We sat there quietly. I was surprised how comfortable she was around me to be doing this sort of thing.

She released the hug and she looked into my eyes. Her blue eyes shining against my hazel ones.

She slowly wrapped her arms around my neck, pulled me closer and kissed me. Her lips clashed against mine in a fury of emotion.

After a minute, she broke the kiss and wiped her face of any tears. We both stood up, put our dishes away and left the cafeteria, not a single word spoken between us.

I can't believe I just kissed Tex...

**A.N: I like this chapter, lots of feels... Anyway, from now on I will start placing the name of the chapter at the beginning of each one. Looks nicer.**

**I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Reviews are welcomed, I must know what I'm doing wrong ;).**

**Have a good one.**

**- Hydra**


	5. Vengeance

**Vengeance.**

Tex and I walked down the halls of _The Mother of Invention _for some time, neither of us speaking a word to eachother. I assumed what happened in the cafeteria, shouldn't have happened. As Tex was staring at the floor like a guilty child.

"Are you okay?" I asked her; to break the awkward silence between us.

She didn't say anything and just carried on walking.

"Tex?" I asked, feeling a little worried. This time I put my hand on her shoulder and it must of snapped her back to reality, as she jumped about a foot in the air.

"Huh? Yeah I'm fine. Just thinking" She spoke out, looking rather distant.

I decided not to pry and left her to her thoughts.

We walked round the corner to see Alaska and Carolina having an argument. Beside Alaska was York, Wash and South. Whereas Carolina had Delaware and his friends Oregon and Hawaii, both of whom were scared-shitless of me. Delaware, on the other hand was my arch-nemesis and I hated him with a fucking passion.

"What the fuck is this?!" I yelled. Silencing everyone in the area.

"I've been looking for you, Vermont" Carolina spat. I really didn't like Carolina. She was a professional bitch and always tried to start on my sister.

"Oh really? And why is that?" I asked through grit teeth.

I could see Delaware and his pussy-friends glaring daggers at me, as Carolina approached me with anger flaring in her eyes. Her A.I.s, Eta and Iota appeared with their arms folded.

"Explain to me why you and Texas here-" She started.

"-Beat the shit out of this annoying shitbag?" I interrupted, gesturing to Delaware.

I could tell she didn't like that as she took a step back and started shaking with anger.

I could feel Zeta starting to stir at the back of my mind with all this racket.

"H-How dare you interrupt me!" Carolina yelled, waking Zeta up entirely.

Zeta appeared next to me, but instead of being her usual amethyst-purple, she was a bright blood-red and very pissed off.

"How dare you wake me up?! You ungrateful, jealous, little bitch!" She yelled. Omega and Epsilon appeared next to her. Epsilon cracked his knuckles and Omega growled.

Carolina lost her confidence and instead looked a little frightened. Eta and Iota tried to come closer to Zeta and she yelled at them too.

"Don't touch me or you WILL regret it!" She snarled. They both retreated to Carolina's side.

Carolina looked shocked, an A.I. insulting a high ranking Agent? She snapped out of it a approached my sister.

She grabbed Alaska by the hair and she screamed in in the room looked at me and then Carolina.

I felt myself getting angrier and angrier by the second. Tex stared at me and took a step back, as did everyone else in the area.

"Let go of my sister, now" I growled. Carolina only tightened her grip.

That was it for me, as I lost it for the first time in nine years.

I clenched my fists and launched myself at Carolina. I gave her a swift right hook to the face and she instantly released her grip on my older sister.

I then kneed her in the gut and that made her curl over in pain. I gave her an uppercut to the nose and she started to develop a nose bleed.

At that moment, Zeta attacked Eta and Iota with no mercy. punching and kicking them in the face and chest.

While this was happening, I had Carolina pinned to the floor and I was furiously punching her in the face with my right arm.

"Nobody... Touches... My...Sister...!" I shouted between punches.

I was then kicked in the face by Delaware, whose friends then held me by the arms and shoved my to my knees.

Delaware then started to punch me in the gut. Blood started to come out of my mouth and Delaware gave me a smile that made me want to break his skull.

I pulled my arms inwards and because his friends weren't strong enough to hold me, they were thrown to the floor.

I stood up and wiped my mouth of any blood. Delaware lost his smug look and looked frightened.

I then muttered a phrase that kept me alive for nine years.

"Life's a bitch and then you die, but sometimes... you get a second chance..."

I threw myself at Delaware and punched him in the visor. I was gonna make this asshole scream for mercy before I stopped.

He was thrown into a wall and in one swift motion, I slammed his head into the wall again and dented it.

If it wasn't for his helmet being on, he would be knocked out.

I then grabbed him by the arm and slammed him into another wall, denting that one too.

For too long I had put up with his shit and today, I was going to repay him for everything he had done.

I pulled him out of the wall and kneed him in the head, sending him to the floor.

No one there tried to stop me, everyone hated Delaware, but I of all, hated him the most.

Whilst he lay on the floor, Carolina stood up and kicked me into a window.

Tex then grabbed her hair and yanked her to the floor.

South, York and Wash all jumped Hawaii and Oregon, punishing them for what they had allowed Delaware to do to me.

Said Delaware was now on his hands and knees, trying to get up.

I then raised my fist one last time to finish him off, but before I could grind that asshole to dust, Alaska had grabbed my arm and stopped me from possibly killing him.

"Don't do it, he's not worth it" She pleaded. Following my sister's wishes, I lowered my arm and turned my back on him.

She's right, he wasn't worth it. As he then got up and ran away.

I looked around to see Tex standing over Carolina's unconscious body and Wash holding Hawaii and Oregon in a double headlock, while South and York were kicking then in their sides.

I could also see that Zeta, Epsilon and Omega throwing Eta and Iota around like ragdolls. Whilst Delta had appeared and started recording it for York's blackmail purposes.

I smiled slightly and coughed up some blood. Alaska looked at me in concern.

"You okay?" She asked with worry in her voice.

I gave her a reassuring nod. "Yeah, I'm okay"

Sensing her mental sigh of relief, we hugged. She was my sister and I would always keep the promise I made with mum.

Tex came over to us and smiled. I assumed she understood the bond I had with my sister.

South, York and Wash had finished with Delaware's friends and ran after the man himself, to settle some unfinished business I guess.

"C'mon!, He went this way!" I heard South yell, York and Wash following her.

"Do we have to?" Wash whined.

"YES! Now hurry the fuck up!" South ordered.

I chuckled slightly and coughed up some more blood. Both Alaska and Tex shared a look of worry.

"We need to get you to the infirmary" Tex said, Alaska nodding in agreement.

"Okay" I said weakly.

"F.I.L.S.S. send some medics to our location" Tex requested.

"Certainly Agent Texas. All available medical staff please report to level 12C, thank you" Her voice cheerily echoed around the ship.

About 30 seconds later 10 medics with stretchers came and picked up the unconscious bodies of Carolina, Hawaii and Oregon.

I was also taken with the aid of Tex and Alaska.

I was placed on a medical bed and put under Zero-G surgery, as I was diagnosed with internal bleeding.

After they took my armor off, I was placed under a strong anesthetic and I waited for my vision to turn black.

I could see Zeta sitting on the floor, so I decided to go and join her. We sat there talking for what felt like an hour. After a while she turned and spoke to me.

"Your body is starting to recuperate from the anesthetic, so I'll see you when you wake up, okay?" She told me in an informative tone.

She then disappeared and a bright light appeared above me.

"Here we go again..." I said, as the light clouded my entire vision.

I then opened my eyes to déjà vu.

There was the bright infirmary light and silhouettes, but these weren't the same silhouettes the first time around. As my vision cleared, I recognized the faces of Texas and Alaska. Who both had smiles on their faces.

I rubbed my eyes and sat up. I looked down and I was in my armor, instead of the horrible surgery clothes.

"Ugh... My head... How long was I out for this time?" I asked the two individuals.

"Only two days, but the Director has suspended your training for a week to let your wounds heal up completely" Tex was the first to speak.

"Wounds...?" I questioned the plural.

"Yeah, you several cuts on your lungs and stomach" Alaska said.

I looked down slightly. "That'll explain why I coughed up blood"

"What happened to Carolina and Delaware?" I asked.

"They were badly punished and are being forced to clean the locker room and toilets and they get the honor of training with Maine for two weeks, courtesy of the Director" Alaska replied with a smile on her face.

I smiled and swung my legs around, I then stood up slowly and took one step. I started to way and Tex caught me before I fell.

"Thanks" I said before giving her a smile.

I started to walk towards the exit before the same nurse I previously saw stood in front of me.

"Ohh no you don't. I'm under strict orders from the Director himself, I can't let you out just yet" She said shaking her head, I could see her curly blonde hair swaying side to side.

"I need to speak with someone" I replied in a strict tone.

"I understand that sir, but I can- Can you hold on one minute?" She asked. I nodded politely.

She ran and picked up the phone that was ringing.

"Hello? Yes sir... Right away sir... Understood... Goodbye sir..." She put down the phone.

"That was the Director, he said you could leave, have a good day sir" She said.

Me, Tex and Alaska all gave a look of confusion.

Zeta appeared and curtsied. "Zeta? What did you do?" I asked her.

"I spoke to the Director and asked him to let you out as soon as you wake up, thankfully, he said yes" She said with a grin.

"You can thank me later" She giggled and logged off.

I loved my A.I.

All three of us left the infirmary and headed for the kick back room. Where we all sat on the corner sofa and watched some T.V.

Wyoming was there reading a magazine on hunting and North was playing video games with Maine, who would push North over everytime he was killed by him.

We stayed there for a few hours watching T.V and laughing at North and Maine.

I checked the time and it was 10:47 pm, I thought it was time for bed as Tex had already fallen asleep and Alaska was on her way.

I nudged Alaska and she nodded at me. I slowly stood up and picked Tex up. Who woke up slightly and held on to my neck.

I said my goodbyes to everyone and carried Tex to her room. I slowly placed her on her bed and stood up, not before she grabbed onto my arm and pulled me on to her bed as well.

Se sat up and gently placed her hands on my face, slowly pulled me closer and kissed me, much more deliberately than the first time, I kissed her back and it felt like nothing in the universe could come between us right now.

She eventually broke the kiss and said three words that stopped my heart.

"I love you"

It took me a while to process what had been said, but I then held her face and kissed her again, deeper then the first one.

I broke the kiss and laid down next to her for about five minutes.

"I need to go to my room now" I said softly and sat up.

"Please stay with me, just for tonight?" She asked softly.

"I guess I can, I haven't got anything to do tomorrow" I replied submissively.

I laid back down next to her and shut my eyes.

"Night Tex" I said.

"Night Monty" She replied.

I then felt myself drift into a deep sleep.

**A.N: Hooray for longest chapter yet! I liked writing this one, but not as much as the previous one. Anyway I hope you like reading this story, as I'm going out of my way on a lot of things to write it for you. I won't name them, as I can't remember them haha.**

**Have a good one!**

**- Hydra**


	6. Peace of Mind

**Peace of Mind.**

I woke up to the sound of the ship engines, the land of the living was a painful one as my chest felt like it was about to cave in. I checked the time and it was 4:06 am. I mentally sighed and tried to get up. I felt a tug on my shirt as I remembered whose bed I slept in last night.

I gently pried Tex's small hand off and placed it in front of her face. I stood up carefully, as to not wake up the sleeping beauty behind me. I looked at the floor to see most of her clothes that she was wearing off, her black t-shirt, skinny jeans and her bra? I blushed slightly at the thought of that.

Omega appeared in front of me with his arms crossed.

"Leaving so soon?" He asked quietly.

"I'm gonna go for a walk, to settle my mind. You can join me if you wish" I whispered.

He nodded and appeared as a full sized human and we left the room. We walked for a while until we got to the starboard observation deck. I always came here to sit and watch the planet we were orbiting.

In this case, it was Earth, Me and Omega were just staring at the blue marble floating in space, when Zeta appeared as was fully sized and was wearing a dress instead of her armor. She looked at me and smiled. I smiled back and continued to stare at Earth.

Not a word was spoken between us for at least 10 minutes. Until Omega gave a sigh, whether it was boredom or relief I couldn't tell. I really couldn't care either. Zeta then started to quietly hum a tune that I didn't recognize. Instead of asking her and feeling awkward, I just left her to it.

She reminded me of a teenage girl, she was about the same height as a fifteen year old, loved her music and she was usually nice, but she has those bad days once in a while. Yesterday being a prime example. I examined her dress, it was a summer dress that came to her knees. It had flowers of varying sizes printed along it.

She looked quite nice in it actually. Suits her.

I figured I could use the one week break the Director gave me, it would give me and Zeta a little peace of mind.

Omega yawned and turned to speak to us.

"I'm going to log off now, Texas has training tomorrow" His baritone voice echoed through the deck.

"Okay Omega, I'll catch you later" I replied, fatigue resonating in my voice.

He disappeared and Zeta looked at me.

"Hey Monty?" She began.

"Mmhmm?" I hummed.

"What will we do tomorrow, as we've got no training for the next week?" She asked in her little innocent voice.

I looked back to the viewing screen and thought for a second.

I didn't even know myself.

"I dunno, play videogames or something?" Then it struck me.

"On second thought I have an idea..."

If it worked, tomorrow could be very interesting...

We turned around and headed back for Tex's room, as to not desert her in the morning.

When we got to her door, Zeta logged off, because the light coming off of her would probably wake Tex.

I climbed back into Tex's bed and she subconsciously wrapped her arm around me. I then closed my eyes, and waited to drift into sleep, tomorrow was going to be very fun indeed...

**A.N: Two chapters in a day? Lucky you guys ;) Anyway, this might not be the only story you see Vermont and Zeta in (Wink, wink), so keep your eye out.**

**Have a good one!**

**- Hydra**


	7. Fresh Meat

**Fresh Meat.**

I woke up the second time to a wide grin. I sat up and rubbed my eyes. Tex had perched herself on my waist and had a shit-eating grin on her face.

"Morning sunshine!" She beamed, although a little too much as I was still half asleep.

I playfully pushed her off me and sat on the side of the bed. The time was 6:34 am meaning I had just about eight hours sleep.

"I hate mornings" I groaned, rubbing my head.

She sat behind me and rested her head on my left shoulder.

"Oh really? Well, maybe next time I should get you up even earlier" She said right next to my ear before biting my earlobe.

She gave me a smug smile and got off the bed. I blushed as I noticed she still didn't have a bra on.

When she turned around, she looked at the reason why I was blushing.

"Feeling a wittle embarrassed?" She said in an innocent voice, quite contradictory to what she was doing.

I covered my eyes in embarrassment and decency. Which made Tex start to giggle and then laugh.

"D'ya think you could put some clothes on now? More specifically, a bra?" I asked.

"If you say so Monty, but I think I'm more comfortable like this" She joked.

Tex then came and sat on my lap with both legs on either side of my body.

I uncovered my eyes and avoided the... area, that she was blatantly showing.

"Hello Tex, any particular reason why you're doing this exactly?" I questioned her.

"Hmm... Now let me think about that..." She began, rolling her eyes side-to-side and stroking her chin.

"...Nope, I don't think so" She teased, winking in the process.

"Well then, could you please get off me?" I decided to play along with her game and jabbed her in the ribs, causing her to curl inwards and squeal.

She was ticklish. This should be fun. A grin began to creep on to my face as I repeatedly jabbed her in the sides. She began to laugh at this point and looked like a worm with all her squirming.

"Okay! Okay! You win, I'll get off you now!" She said between fits of laughter.

She stood up catwalked over to her armor closet. Her armor was neatly placed on the mannequin, whereas mine was placed under her bed. We suited up and left the room, careful not to be seen by anybody as to not raise suspicion.

When we entered the cafe, I could see York, Wash, Maine, Wyoming, Alaska, North, South and Florida all sat together on one table. I scanned the room further to see Carolina, Delaware, Hawaii and Oregon on another table, glaring at me and Tex. I shot them a look which made them turn around.

We calmly walked over to the serving area and I eyed up the options. After making up my mind I decided to have some cereal, a glass of apple juice and a banana.

Tex picked up some toast with strawberry jam and some coffee.

We sat down with the more "desirable" members of the project, and engaged in some conversation.

"So man, how was the op?" York asked, taking a chunk out of his apple.

"Well York, as I was unconscious for most of it, I wouldn't know" I said, a little pedantically.

"Fair enough" He said smiling.

I shoveled a spoonful of cereal in my mouth and remembered the plan I had for today.

I could see the other A.I.s in the corner of my eye.

"Hey Z? Why don't you go speak to your brothers?" I suggested.

Zeta appeared with her hands on her hips and her head cocked to one side.

"You trying to get rid of me Vermont?" She scowled.

I tried to hold back a smile as she reminded me so much of Alaska.

"No, I was asking if you wanted to go speak to your brothers, but as the obvious answer is no, I guess you can stay here." I stated.

"Hey, I heard we're getting a new recruit today, supposed to have an A.I. already?" North spoke out.

"Are you fucking kidding me?!" South yelled, slamming her fist on the table.

"What's his name?" Wash asked.

"Nevada I think" North replied.

"I can't believe that son of a bitch gets an A.I. on his first day!" South shouted, stomping her feet around.

"His first training session is rocket tag" North continued.

"Jesus, I'm definitely watching that" I said.

"How do you know this, old chap?" Wyoming joined in.

"Because I've been chosen to participate along with South, Alaska and Wash. However, if Monty wasn't injured you would be taking Wash's place." North replied.

I laughed slightly and grinned at Wash, who sighed.

"Cheer up Wash, at least you didn't have two surgeries in one day" I tried to lighten the mood.

He gave a wry smile and sighed again.

"Attention, can Agents North Dakota, South Dakota, Alaska and Washington please report to the training room floor as soon as possible, thank you" F.I.L.S.S.' optimism echoed round the mess hall.

"I'm going too, I don't wanna miss this" I added. "Come on Z, you can stop looking at me like that now, we're going to watch explosions" She brightened up and followed me.

Omega appeared looking excited. "Explosions?! Where?! Texas, we have to go and watch!" He quickly said.

Tex chuckled and stood up. "Fine Omega, but you owe me one"

"Deal" He said in his baritone voice, I had never seen an A.I. be so happy to watch destruction.

Wyoming and Maine also stood up, Sigma and Gamma still talking to eachother.

"Agent York, may I suggest we go and observe the training scenario also? It is good to watch other individual styles of fighting to help improve your own" Delta inquired.

"D, you don't need to ask me to go and watch rocket tag, I already decided to go and watch, that shit is awesome!" York replied, standing up and walking towards the rest of the group.

All nine of us all walked towards the training room floor, excited to see the new recruit get his ass handed to him on a silver platter.

When we got there Alaska, North, South and Wash all went inside the training floor. The rest of us, however, went into the observation room.

Then I saw Nevada himself, he had green armor with cobalt trim with a CQC helmet with a rare silver visor, left Enforcer shoulder pad, right Jump Jet shoulder pad, Scout chest plate, FJ para knees, Tactical hard case and Tactical pad on default Mjolnir forearms.

This guy was kitted with all kinds of tech, I could see from the attachment at the back of his helmet, that he had Advanced Heads Up Display, of AHUD for short.

I knew this because I was one of those that helped with the prototype and I use it.

I knew my technology, but my knowledge was NOTHING compared to this guy.

"Hey, he's a bit small isn't he?" York spoke out from behind me, causing a few of us to laugh.

I heard the doors open and turned around. The Director and the Counselor walked through and stood beside me.

"Agents" The Director barked. We all stood in formation and saluted him.

"I want you to examine our new tactician, Nevada. The UNSC sent him to us as we need someone of his degree in our line of work." He continued.

"Some of you may be wondering why he has been granted an A.I. on his first day, well I am here to answer that" His southern accent echoed through the room slightly.

"As a Tactician, Agent Nevada has some technology only operable with the help of an Artificial Intelligence, as normal suit systems aren't capable of doing so by themselves, due to it's level of... advancement." I was slowly getting more excited by the second, as new "toys" always excited me.

"That will be all, dismissed" He finished.

We all walked over to the viewing screen.

"F.I.L.S.S. start the simulation" The Director ordered.

"Yes Director. Round begins in 3... 2... 1... Begin!"

**A.N: Hey guys, let me introduce Nevada and Omicron who are actually created by my good friend Jamie (Shoutout :3).** **His profile on here is AphoticSymbiote for those that wanna go check him out, he hasn't written any stories yet though. But expect to see some in the future. Also while I'm dishing out shoutouts, go and check out missmoney101, she has some great stories of her own.**

**Have a good one!**

**-Hydra**


	8. Rockets and Vengeance

**Rockets and Vengeance**

"Round begins in 3... 2... 1... Begin!" F.I.L.S.S. said.

North and South split up and tried to flank Nevada. Who had placed himself in the middle of the arena. If this guy knows how to use his AHUD he would have made his A.I. mark them all.

Apparently he had because as soon as North turned a corner, a rocket had shot right past him and barely missed.

North ducked round the corner and I could see Alaska and Washington try to flank him, it obviously didn't work as a rocket was fired at a pillar near Wash, smothering him in lockdown paint.

While Nevada disposed of Wash, two rockets from South were fired directly behind him and were on a course straight for his back.

His A.I. must have seen this coming because all of a second, Nevada punched the ground and bright glowing shield emitted from his armor.

The rockets made contact and bounced off in two different directions. Unfortunately for my sister, she was one of them. As a rocket exploded right in front of her feet. I couldn't help but laugh at the fact that Alaska was killed by friendly fire.

At this point, Omega was practically jumping for joy. On the contrary, Tex wasn't, as she seemed somewhat annoyed. A grin crawled on my face as I could have sworn I saw her eye twitch.

I looked back at the battle raging below. Nevada and North were in a fist fight, although I guessed that wasn't Nevada's strong point as North was kinda kicking his ass. Nevada barely dodged a punch to the face and threw something at the ground.

All of a sudden a cloud of smoke appeared where they had been fighting.

When the smoke had cleared, Nevada had disappeared and North was left standing there, rocket launcher primed.

However, his efforts were in vain, as below his feet, Nevada had left him a friendly paint grenade.

North had barely any time to react as his gift exploded, splattering him with lockdown paint. Everyone in the room were amazed. I looked around and saw that York and Wash's faces were of complete awe.

Nevada then calmly walked past his frozen body and sarcastically saluted him.

South suddenly came out of nowhere and fired another rocket, He went into armor lock again and the rocket hit the viewing screen, I jumped back a bit as the rocket hit the glass and exploded on impact, causing it to crack.

Thank God it was 10 inches thick and bullet-proof, otherwise we would have all been pretty fucked.

Nevada quickly spun around and returned the favor, sending both rockets on a crash course with South, who fired her other rocket at the floor in front of her creating a paint-wall for the rockets to crash into.

It half-worked, as it stopped the first rocket dead in its tracks, but blew a hole through the "wall" for the other rocket, which ended up right in front of South's feet. Ending the game.

Nevada then slung his rocket launcher over his shoulder, looked around at his work and walked away, leaving everyone in the room, other than the Director, awestruck.

"Agent Vermont" The Director turned to me.

"Sir?" I responded.

"I want you to show Agent Nevada around the ship, make him feel welcome, so to speak" He ordered.

We all went to see Nevada. I was standing behind the Director and Counselor.

"Agent Nevada, I would like you to meet Agent Vermont" The Director began.

"He is here to show you around _The Mother of Invention_"_  
_

"Sup?" I said.

Nevada took his helmet off to reveal bright blue eyes, full of ambition and fearlessness.

"H-Hello" He said, he had a strong British accent, he sounded a little nervous, but I guessed it was because it was his first day.

He also had long brown hair. Given by his features, I'd say he was no older than 18.

He reminded me a of myself...

* * *

Me and Nevada walked along the port windows, towards the mess hall, where everyone would probably be waiting to see Nevada.

I had just shown him the locker room, showers, briefing room, and cabins. I looked at him for a second.

"Where you from, kid?" I asked, trying not to intimidate him.

"London in England, Earth" He replied.

I chuckled slightly.

"You don't need to tell me where London is my friend, I'm from Earth myself" I patted him on the back, causing him to flinch slightly.

"I'm from New Mombasa, in Africa, you might have heard of it" I said.

"Yeah I have, have they built the space lift yet?" He asked, brightening up a little.

"How do you think I got to the ship?" I replied.

I took my helmet off to reveal a smile.

I scratched my face slightly and flinched at the feel of a stubble that had began to grow.

"So other than the Advanced HUD, what other armor abilities do you have?" I asked.

"H-How did you know I had AHUD?" Nevada stuttered slightly.

"That attachment, on your helmet, I helped building the prototype, you also gave it away with the rare silver visor, which gives a clearer HUD appearance, same as mine" I pointed to my black visor and my AHUD attachment.

"The Director also said that you have some technology that only an A.I. could run, hence why you got yours on day one, I know this because I helped to test it with another A.I." I was smirking at his face, his mouth was wide open, probably still trying to absorb all this information I was feeding him.

"I also know that your A.I. was the one pointing out the rockets fired at you, as no human could have seen them coming without assistance. I have you all figured out my friend" I was grinning at this point.

"H-H-How do you know all this?" He asked, he looked about as awestruck as everyone in the observation room during the rocket tag.

We stopped walking and I put my hand on his shoulder.

"Comes with the job kiddo" I replied.

We started walking again and reached a corner in the hallway, I then heard some voices I instantly recognized. I hugged the wall and stuck my arm out to grab Nevada before he turned the corner. He hugged the wall with me and put my helmet on.

Nevada followed and we neared the edge of the corner. I stuck my head out slightly to see who it was that was talking.

Then I saw him...

Delaware and Carolina were standing there talking with each other. I turned on my reconnaissance microphone and did a little eavesdropping.

"We need to get him back for this 'Lina!, we need to get them ALL back for what they've done to us" Delaware pleaded her.

"Don't call me that Delaware! You should know this by now..." Carolina snapped.

"Z, record this, I need to show someone" Zeta appeared hugging the wall as well, she had dimmed her light show she doesn't give away our position.

"Already ahead of you, I started recording as soon as you put your helmet on" She whispered, winking in the process.

"Sorry Carolina, but you know my feelings for you..." Delaware sounded ashamed. It made me smile at the amount of the blackmail material I was receiving, York would be proud.

"D-Don't say that !" Carolina shouted at him. Was I sensing a connection between these two?

"Z, make copies of this, this is great blackmail material" I whispered to her.

"You must really think I'm stupid don't you Monty? I've already set it to copy ten times after we finish recording. Ugh... Men_" _This made me chuckle slightly.

However maybe a little too loud because it echoed down the hallway and into Carolina and Delaware's earshot.

"Shit... Okay Nevada stand up, we're gonna make it look like we're just walking down the hallway" I whispered.

Me and Nevada then both stood up and started to walk around the corner pretending to laugh at something.

"Well, well, if it isn't the devil himself, oh and a new friend to join him" Delaware sneered, probably trying to impress Carolina.

"Says the chickenshit, that requires his friends to hold me while you punch me in the stomach" I retaliated.

"Oh, and by the way..." I stood right in front of him so we were eye-to-eye. "... Y-Y-Y-You hit l-l-like a bitch" My sounded like a distorted growl at the last part, which sounded similar to mine and Zeta's overlapping each other. I had seen it with Tex and Omega and I decided to try it out

It worked on intimidating Delaware as he was obviously uncomfortable, because he swallowed his grit and stepped back slightly.

"That's enough Vermont!" Carolina stepped in between us.

"You don't tell me what to do Carolina" I turned and looked her into her eyes.

"If I remember rightly, you aren't exactly number one anymore" I growled again. I could see she was annoyed by that fact as she but her lip and scowled at me.

I could feel Nevada growing uncomfortable behind me. So I stood back slightly and waited for Carolina to reply.

Instead, she didn't say anything and pushed past me to get to get to Nevada.

"And _who_ exactly are you?" She demanded.

"N-Nevada" He stuttered, seeing him grow tense again, I placed my arm in between them both.

"Leave him alone Carolina" My voice had returned back to normal.

"Or what Monty?" Delaware regained his confidence and decided to join in again.

"You'll beat us up? _As _if..." He was getting cocky fast and it was annoying me.

"It's a two on one fight Vermont and with your _injuries_ I'd say you've already lost" He sneered.

"Actually Delaware, make that a _two_ on two fight and by the way, thanks to the magic of modern science, I'm not actually injured anymore" I could really feel myself growing angrier by the second.

"If you wanna get to him, you'll have to go through me..." I growled.

I turned to Nevada. "Kid, prepare yourself for a fight, if either one hits you, hit them back" I ordered. He nodded at me and I turned my attention back to Delaware.

"Your move, ladies" I spoke, voice overflowing with malice. I really wanted to get them back and Carolina even more so.

All of a sudden, Carolina roundhouse kicked me in the chest, but due to my height advantage, I barely moved.

"I that it?" I taunted. I was deliberately making her angry, so she'd make mistakes.

She then sent a flurry of punches all of which I blocked, I then grabbed her by the arm and swung her into the wall. Knocking the wind out of her. I wasn't gonna show any mercy for these two.

I then punched her in the gut four times, picked her up and threw her to the floor, while she was down, I kicked her in the stomach sending her sliding along the floor.

At this point Delaware had grabbed Nevada by the throat. Nevada, whom of which was trying to swing for him.

She coughed and tried to get up. I then immediately turned my attention to Delaware and cracked my knuckles.

"There's more where that came from, so I suggest you choose the smart decision, Delaware" I snarled.

"Take her and get the fuck out of here, or suffer the consequences..." I continued.

He took the smart choice and let go of Nevada, ran over to Carolina and helped her to her feet.

"This isn't over Vermont! You'll see soon enough!" He spat.

I took my helmet off and looked at Nevada.

"Let me introduce you to Delaware and Carolina. The biggest assholes in the project and the ones that always fuck with everyone" I said in a friendly manner.

"C'mon kid, let's go and get some lunch" I urged.

"Sure, after that training session, I've really worked up an appetite" He grinned.

I could already see the foundations of a strong friendship here.

* * *

When we finally got to the mess hall I was greeted by a herd of "Where were you"'s and "What were you doing"'s and even a "You're late" from Tex.

Me and Nevada then grabbed some food and had Zeta play back the recording to everyone.

"What a sadistic bitch" South spat.

It turns out that Zeta had secretly recorded everything on my helmet-cam as well and she played the part where me and Carolina had started to fight me.

"Why would she do that North?" Theta asked. Even the A.I.s had joined in.

"I don't know Theta" North replied.

I heard the doors open and I turned around to see Alaska running towards me. She came over and gave me a hug.

"I heard what happened, are you okay?!" She asked.

"Yeah, just a scratch" I replied. She let go and sat down next to me.

"Alaska, I'd like you to meet our newest member, Nevada" I gestured to Nevada who waved to her.

"Nevada, this is my sister Alaska" I then gestured to Alaska. Who waved back.

"Hey" "Hi"

"Anyway" I interrupted their awkward introductions. "I have to show Nevada some stuff, so I'll catch you later, Okay?" I said to Alaska.

"Okay, Monty, I'll see you later" She smiled. We hugged briefly and I left with Nevada.

We stopped just before we went through the doors and I looked over to the table where everyone was sitting.

"Hey Tex!" I called. She turned to face me. "For the record, I was never late, you were early" I yelled with a grin.

She rolled her eyes and shook her head. But I could have sworn I saw her smirk slightly.

Me and Nevada then left the mess hall and went towards the classroom to do some "research"...

**A.N: Here's to the new longest chapter award holder! Hooray! Anyway, I actually stayed up until 2:40am GMT to finish this so I hope you like it. Credit for Nevada and Omicron goes to AphoticSymbiote, who is actually a close friend of mine. You should go check him out, however, he has't got any content at the moment because he only recently made an account, but you can expect to see stories about comics and anime and all other kinds of things. I hope you enjoy this long chapter, because it was a pain to write. :)**

**Have a good one!**

**-Hydra**


	9. Espionage

**Espionage.  
**

Me and Nevada entered the classroom and shut the door behind us with a small click.

We decided to keep the lights off as we weren't exactly supposed to be in there...

"You ready to acquire blackmail material Vada?" I asked with a smirk plastered across my face.

"Oh yeah" He replied.

I pulled the data chip from my helmet and placed it inside one of the desk terminals.

The screen sprung to life with folders. I swiped along said folders until I got to videos.

I double tapped it and it opened up, revealing about two-hundred videos recorded from my helmet-cam.

I opened up the most recent video and watched it again.

I winced slightly when I punched her in the stomach. I kinda felt bad for doing it but then I remembered something...

It's Carolina. Who gives a fuck?

I stopped the video and swiped across the screen. A menu a appeared with several options: Play, Pause, Stop, Next video, Previous video and copy.

I tapped the copy option and a window popped up with additional option.

I scanned the screen until I found what I was looking for.

Copies: 1.

I tapped the number and decided on the amount of copies I needed.

I decided to make fifteen copies and waited for it to do it's job.

I turned to Nevada who was drumming his fingers.

"Bored already?" I asked, grinning.

He turned around and looked at me.

"Huh? Oh.. yeah, I guess..." He said, sounding a little distant.

I shrugged and looked back at the screen, it was 68% done and the estimated time was 9 minutes.

A light briefly flashed behind me.

Startled by this, I quickly turned around to see an orange figure looking me in the eye.

"Hello, Agent Vermont" it began. The voice was deep and masculine.

On further inspection, the figure was wearing Mjolnir Mark VI armor and was bright orange.

The figure then bent round and looked at the terminal behind me.

He disappeared and reappeared in front of the screen.

He then brought up a holographic screen of his own and started to fiddle with sliders.

"What are you doing?" I asked him. Tilting my head to the side.

"Sorry for not introducing him. This is Omicron, my AI" Nevada interrupted.

"He is the fragment of knowledge" He continued.

"Yeah but... What is he _doing?_" I asked, feeling confused.

"I'm overclocking the terminal processor and random access memory to increase the speed at which the copying process is operating at" Omicron replied.

"Oh, okay" I said, raising an eyebrow.

"Do you even understand what he means?" Zeta asked pedantically, appearing in front of me with her hands on her hips and her head cocked to the side.

"Of course I do, Z" I replied.

"Bullshit, you do..." She mumbled, before logging off again.

She had been in a pissy mood ever since the "incident", with Carolina and Delaware.

Ironic really, as she was supposed to be the fragment of compassion.

I dismissed my thoughts and focused on the terminal again.

The progress bar was now at 84% with 4 minutes left. Omicron was still operating the sliders and buttons, keeping up the copy speed I presumed.

Apparently it wasn't fast enough because I could hear muffled voices from outside the classroom door.

"Shit, we gotta hurry this up guys" I hurriedly said.

"It would go a lot faster if I had another AI" Omicron replied.

"Zeta, help him" She complied and appeared next to Omicron. She then brought up a holographic screen and started to work on the terminal.

It was working, as we only had 2 minutes to wait now.

Unfortunately two minutes wasn't quick enough as the voices were getting louder. Meaning we were pretty close to getting caught.

"Can't we make this go faster?" I hissed.

"Not with out opening the machine up" Nevada whispered.

"Fuck... okay then. If anyone enters, hide down here. Omicron, Zeta, you two dim the screen but still work on the copying, let me know when it's done" I ordered.

Everyone gave a nod of acknowledgement.

We had another minute to go, but our luck soon ran out as some people entered the room.

As planned, me and Nevada hid behind the desk, Omicron and Zeta logged off, but remained working on the copying and the terminal screen shut off, shrouding the room in darkness.

Me and Nevada both put our helmets on and activated night vision, thanks to the AHUD.

Three Agents had entered the room, Oregon, Hawaii and Alabama.

I double-checked my speakers were off and activated my communicator.

"We got three contacts, Alabama, Hawaii and Oregon" I whispered to Nevada, who was crouched under the desk.

He nodded in response and I started to listen to their conversation.

"Hey guys, you hear about what happened to Carolina?" Hawaii began.

"No" His stupid friends said in unison.

"Apparently, that asshole Monty kicked the shit out of her for no reason, Delaware said that he just lost it and attacked them both" He said.

I clenched my fist in anger and was about to go and punch him, before Nevada grabbed my arm and pulled me back down.

"Are you serious? What a dick!" Oregon yelled, before being elbowed in the side for making too much noise.

"Yeah, Delaware is going to tell the Director and make an inquiry about getting his AI" Hawaii smirked.

I had to use an serious amount of restraint to stop myself from going and beating some sense into them idiots.

That motherfucker Delaware was in for one hell of a beating.

After I show the director the Director what _really_ happened, of course.

"The copies are ready" Omicron said via the com-channel.**_  
_**

I turned around and yanked the data crystal out of the terminal, and placed it inside the slot on the back of my helmet.

"Hey, Hawaii do you think we should tell the Director now?" Oregon asked him.

"No you imbecile. Let Delaware do it" Hawaii snarled.

"Anyway, let's go, I wanna go annoy the newbie" Hawaii called, his bitches following him.

When they had definitely left the room, we stood up.

"We have to show this to the Director"

I wasn't going to let myself get set up for defending myself and another.

Too many things have been taken from me in my life.

My mother, my home, my friends... Above all, I wasn't going to let them take Zeta from me.

Not now, not ever...

**A.N: Sorry I haven't uploaded in while, I had to take care of some things. Anyway, here's a fresh chapter to make up for some lost time, enjoy! :)**

**Have a good one!**

**-Hydra**


	10. Distrust and Sarcasm

**Distrust and Sarcasm**

Me and Nevada wandered hastily towards the Director's office.

When we got there, we opened the door.

Empty. The room was completely deserted.

Feeling a little confused, I decided to call on an "angel", so to speak.

"F.I.L.S.S, where's the Director?" I asked.

"I'm sorry Agent Vermont, but the Director has to tend to other duties, shall I leave a message?" The pleasant voice of F.I.L.S.S replied.

"No, it's fine, but let me know when he's back" I ordered.

"Affirmative" She replied.

I turned around and walked towards the door, Nevada soon copied.

An orange flash caught my attention, I turned to face the visor of Omicron.

"May I suggest relaxing in the lounge until the Director returns?" His monotone voice resonated.

"He has a point. May as well kill some time" Nevada followed.

"Fuck it, let's go to the lounge, nothing to do anyway"

* * *

Upon entering the lounge, there were several characters willing to converse with us. Washington, Maine, South and an unfamiliar face.

Me and Nevada took a seat on a sofa that being occupied by South.

"Sup?" She said, as I sank into the cushion.

"Hey" Me and Nevada said in unison.

"Hey Monty, this the new guy?" She inquired.

"Yeah, say hello to Nevada, South" I spoke in an introductory tone.

"Hey" "Hi".

After brief introductions we decided to talk.

* * *

After about thirty or so minutes of talking about life in general, I started to wonder what Zeta was up to, as being quiet was odd, given her happy nature.

"_Hey Z, you there?"_ I asked.

"_Of course" _She replied cheerily.

"_Well, care to come and join us?_" I invited.

After a few seconds of contemplating this decision, she finally gave in and appeared, sat on my shoulder, reading a book.

"Is _this_ the reason why you've been so quiet?" My curiosity peaking.

"Uh-huh" She said, not diverting herself from the book.

Gaining the attention of Wash and Maine, they both decided to come over and examine Zeta. Sigma must have picked up on this new interest, as he soon appeared next to Zeta, trying to read over her shoulder.

"May I ask what you are reading, sister?" His voice caused a shiver to run down my spine. This one was definitely the creepiest.

"That's a book, Sigma" She replied sarcastically.

He then gave the shit-scariest smile I have ever seen and opened his mouth to reply.

"Very well, sister. I see you are... occupied, with your reading material" He then gave me another smile and logged off.

Thank god I still had my helmet on, as people would see the the evil look I was giving Sigma's last known location.

I really, really don't trust him around my A.I...

* * *

**I'm back from the dead ladies and gentleman! Sorry for the long-ass absence but I was doing an awful lot of coursework and my laptop had a screen bleed... OH WELL! I got a far more powerful PC and a lot more time on my hands. Also, before I forget, I'm currently working on another FanFic based on the siege on Madrigal (Halo, for those that don't understand) for anyone that is interested.**

**Anyway, hope you enjoyed this short one, wrote it in about an hour.**

**Have a good one! - Hydra**


	11. Boarding Party

Boarding party

I decided it was time to leave, as I was still slightly disturbed by Sigma. I stood up to leave and before I knew it, the ship shook violently.

"Alert! Alert! We are being boarded! This is not a drill!" The voice of F.I.L.S.S. began, however it was in a serious tone instead of her usual happy chirping.

Everyone in the room suddenly stood up to respond to this emergency. My primal instincts peaked as I felt a strong rush of adrenaline start to flow through my veins.

Acting almost immediately, I ran out the room and headed for the armoury, where I scanned for my locker. "Washington, Texas, Wyoming, Maine... Aha! Vermont". I slammed my fingers on the holographic lock in front of me until a hiss could be heard, signifying the locker was open.

There she was...

The firearm in front of me had saved me on many occasions. Carefully engraved on the side were the words _Finite Immortality__. _I ran my thumb along the engraving and picked up the weapon. She was a heavily modified version of the M45 Tactical Shotgun, used primarily during the fall of Reach._  
_

I picked up a handful of standard close range shells from the ammo box next to the weapon rack. I also took my magnum and a combat knife.

Zeta appeared in front of me looking a bit scared. "Monty? What's going on?" She sounded terrified and looked it too.

"We're under attack Z, which means people can and will die, if you and I don't do our part" I replied morbidly.

"What do we need to do Monty?" She asked, sounding more braver then before.

"We need to secure certain locations, these include the Bridge, Engines, Power and Hanger"

She nodded and logged off.

I left the room and headed for the Hanger, assuming that was where I was going to find most of the attackers.

I entered the Hanger to hear multiple gunshots and a dying scream. I carefully walked towards one of the entrances with my shotgun primed and ready to fire.

As I entered the Hanger, I could see several dead Freelancer marines in a mixed pool of their own blood and an unknown soldier wearing midnight black Mark VI armor.

The figure was standing over a wounded marine wielding a magnum. The marine's eyes were wide and filled with fear, I couldn't let this poor soul's blood be on my hands.

"Hey asshole!" I yelled, grabbing the soldiers attention. The soldier's head snapped to where I was and he lowered his sidearm from the fallen marine

I jumped down from the catwalk and slowly walked up to this asswipe. We were then face to face.

"I suggest you stand down Freelancer" The man behind the mask growled.

"Who's gonna make me?" I returned, my voice as deep as his.

"You don't understand what's going on do you son? I was ordered to kill one of you team mates by the Director" He stated.

"Bull. Shit" I spat, as I rammed my fist into the cold-hearted man's stomach, causing him to double over in pain. I then kneed him in the visor as hard as I can, causing a small crack to emerge.

He gave a chesty cough and stood upright. "I'm gonna give you a chance to drop your weapons and hand them to me, otherwise, I'll be forced to kill you" I wasn't going to do as he says, I had a job to do.

"Oh yeah, you and what army?" I asked.

"This one" He stated darkly. As he finished, four additional soldiers uncloaked standing behind him.

_"He has a team? Fuck..." _I thought to myself.

"Zeta... If you don't mind?" I asked calmly. Just as I said that, my Suit Jammer came online and began disrupting their suit systems, causing armor ability malfunctions and hydraulic pump failures, effectively doubling their suit's weight and crushing them with it.

"Stop... This... Madness... !" I heard the leader of the group yell, as he was struggling to lift his suit.

"Now let me think about that... You just told me, that you were going to murder one of my team mates and, as I disagreed with that statement, you then threatened to _kill_ me, so why should _I_ trust _you_ in the fucking slightest?_" _I yelled at him, getting pissed off more and more by the second.

"Zeta, increase disruption by 30%" I ordered. Causing their suits to start electrocuting them.

Call me sadistic, but this was satisfying.

"_AHHH!__" _I heard them all scream in unison. One of the soldiers, female I think, collapsed onto her knees under the weight and pain.

I didn't feel sorry for any of them.

Zeta appeared next to me with a rather sinister smile on her face, I think she was enjoying this just as much as I was.

* * *

"Agent Vermont! What in the _hell _do you think you are doing?!" A stern voice barked behind me.

Me and Zeta both turned around. It was the Director, and he didn't look happy in the slightest.

"Stand down Agent!" He ordered And I followed, disabling my armor ability.

The five suits behind me then shut down and started up ten seconds later.

"You _still _haven't answered my question, Agent" The director growled.

"I thought we were being boarded sir" I replied, trying to keep as much dignity as I could find.

"Well you thought _wrong_ boy" The leader sneered as he and his team strode past me.

I could see Texas standing beside the entrance to the hangar, looking apologetic towards me.

"Agent Vermont, I wish to see you in my office" The Director spoke up.

"What for?" I questioned his antics.

"For an explanation, of what just happened" He replied.

A rush of discomfort and scepticism rose inside me. Whether it was me or Zeta, I couldn't tell, but something peculiar was going on, and I didn't like it.

Not one bit...

* * *

**A.N: Hello :) Here's the newest installation of this wonderful story I've written for you guys. I hope you have enjoyed it. I've decided to add some action into the story, as I've found you guys like that sort of stuff. I've also changed my writing style a LOT since the first chapter, if you haven't noticed ;) Anyway, more to come soon. Reviews are welcome, let me know what I'm missing. Also, PM me if you have any suggestions of what I should add.**

**Have a good one!**

**-Hydra**


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